CONFIGURATION OF OVERHEAD CHANNELS IN A MIXED BANDWIDTH SYSTEM

• US 20030072331A1
• Filed: 04/23/1999
• Published: 04/17/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: JOU, YU-CHEUN
• Granted Patent: US 6,925,067 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/503
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/262 Reduction thereof by selection of pilot symbols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2657 Carrier synchronisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0021 in which codes are applied as a frequency-domain sequences, e.g. MC-CDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/005 of common pilots, i.e. pilots destined for multiple users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0064 Rate requirement of the data, e.g. scalable bandwidth, data priority

Abstract

A method and apparatus for transmitting broadcast information in a multi-carrier communication system. The Sync Channel of the multi-carrier system is transmitted a 1.25 MHz channel bandwidth (i.e., over a single carrier), and to specify the preferred channels for the Sync Channel transmission instead of the preferred channels for the entire multi-carrier system. The Sync Channel Message will carry the additional information to indicating the center frequency of a multi-carrier system within a reserved set of frequency bands and indicating the frequency of a single carrier system in the reserved set of frequency bands. Considering the A block of the PCS band again, the preferred channels for Sync Channel transmission can be selected as channels 75, 150 and 225. This selection ensures that one of the preferred channels will always be used by any multi-carrier system regardless the location of its center channel.

Claims

1. A multi-carrier base station operating within a predetermined set of frequencies wherein data components of forward link data are transmitted simultaneously on a plurality of frequency bands, said base station comprising:

a first transmission subsystem for transmitting a sync channel message on a single carrier frequency of a set of frequencies of said multi-carrier system; and

at least one additional transmission subsystem for transmitting remaining components of said forward link data.

2. The base station of claim 1 wherein said sync channel message indicates the center frequency of at least one multi carrier system in said predetermined set of frequencies.

3. The base station of claim 1 wherein said sync channel message indicates the frequency of a single carrier system in said predetermined set of frequencies.

4. The base station of claim 2 wherein said sync channel message indicates the frequency of a single carrier system in said predetermined set of frequencies.

5. The base station of claim 2 wherein said sync channel message is transmitted on one of a set of a preferred frequency channels wherein the number of frequencies in said set of preferred frequency channels is less number of frequencies in said predetermined set of frequencies.

6. The base station of claim 5 wherein said set of predetermined frequencies are the set of frequency bands in a personal communications system block of frequencies.

7. The base station of claim 6 wherein the channel numbers of the set of preferred frequency channels are 75, 150 and 225.

8. A multi-carrier mobile station comprising:

a control processor for controlling the operation of a plurality of receiver subsystems in accordance with information indicated in a received sync carrier message;

a first receiver subsystem for receiving said sync channel message on single carrier frequency and for providing said sync carrier message to said control processor and for receiving a first portion of a multi-carrier signal;

at least one additional receiver subsystem for receiving additional portions of said multi-carrier signal.

9. The mobile station of claim 8 wherein said control processor is further for deciding whether to operate in a single band mode or a multi-carrier mode and for directing said first receiver system to tune to a frequency indicated in said sync channel message for the reception of a single band system when said mobile station decides to operate in a single band mode and for directing said first receiver subsystem to tune to a first frequency and for directing said at least one additional receiver subsystem to tune to at lest one additional frequency when said mobile station decides to operate in a multi-carrier mode.

10. The mobile station of claim 8 wherein said control processor directs said first receiver subsystem to tune to one of a predetermined set of preferred frequencies.

11. The mobile station of claim 8 wherein said mobile station is operating within a personal communication system (PCS) set of frequencies and wherein said predetermined set of preferred frequencies consist of the frequency channel numbers 75, 150 and 225.